We know absolutely, positively nothing about this except we absolutely, positively know it had nothing to do with Islam.

Sincerely,
Toronto Police

Posted by: Jay at July 29, 2006 12:43 PM

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Methinks thou doth protest too much, Officer.....

Posted by: TBinSTL at July 29, 2006 05:05 PM

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Steve, though I'm sure you don't need reminding, here are two excerpts from what you wrote back on July 16:

So we have a Westernized woman, born of a clannish Muslim family, unmarried and living on her own instead of under the protection of her male relatives. Already flags go up. She is probably dating, perhaps even kissing, strange non-Muslim men. Maybe drinking alcohol. Allah knows what else. The shame might be more than members of her family born and raised in Somalia could bear, especially if clan relatives in Somalia had gotten news of the situation.

This is speculation of course. Perhaps there is a good reason why the family did not note her disappearance for several days (a missed garbage pickup meant that the garbage bags were left out for several days before the body was discovered).

My gut tells me this was no mugging gone bad.

What if we do have an honour killing here? Clearly no one can says this is what happened, but then everyone is studiously avoiding looking at the dots that could be connected. Take that dangerous step with me and ask, "What if...?"

Then all the trouble that has beset Europe in the last dozen years might very well be on the horizon here.

[...]

If this story plays out as my instincts tell me it will (and I will try to follow it as best I can and let you know, one way or the other), then Toronto in particular and Canada as a whole will have to ask some harsh questions about just how well "Canadian values", so often talked about by the Liberal Party, have been taught to the immigrants who have been waved through our borders over the years. If those values fall away at the first hint of the Canadian lifestyle that goes along with those values (individual freedom, personal responsibility, gender equality, etc), then we might have a serious problem on our hands as the first generation born of those immigrants start coming of age. What problems? Extremism fueled by a harsh effort to retain traditional values and customs, resulting in violence and even death. Sometimes violence and death restricted to the community in question. Sometimes spilling out into the community at large.

Now it appears that your speculations were off-base, fueled more by your own preconceptions about Muslim culture than by the facts of the case (of which few were even publicly available). Ms. Ashareh died in the most tragic and gruesome fashion, but it appears that her death was motivated neither by her Somali nor her (alleged) Muslim background. At this point, you could have taken the high-road (and earned my respect in the process) by offering a humble retraction of your earlier inflammatory comments. You did not, instead brushing them with this flippant remark:

Looks like my spidey-sense was wrong.

A young woman is murdered, and because you believed her to be Muslim, you presumed immediately that it was an "honour killing." And because you believed it to be an honour killing, you then presumed that it indicated the presence of an immigrant (read: Muslim) subculture that may soon rise up to threaten our "Canadian lifestyle."

Do you regard your blog as serving to sound alarm bells for the good of the nation, that what you do here helps to uphold "Canadian values"? Do you not realize that when you speculate so recklessly about other people and their cultures, you also insult them viciously? That you commit a very real form of violence against their name? That when you, at the slightest of provocations, so casually apply your negative stereotypes onto entire communities, what you are in effect saying to these communities is, "I do not desire to know you, I do not welcome you here"?

I do not believe you to be the sole, or even remotely primary, cause of Islamic fundamentalism in Canada--its reality is far too complex for simplistic blame-games--but I urge you, in a quiet moment, to consider the possibility that your prejudicial and disdainful attitude towards Muslim Canadians accomplishes little except to push alienated moderates towards the extremes. You may try to hide behind disingenuous excuses and qualifiers like "Well, I did say I was being speculative" or "I hope I’m wrong, because..." but know that behind these lame cop-outs, your intentions are readily transparent to the Muslim communities you slander. You wish to uncover how home-grown religious extremism is made to grow? Take a good hard look in the mirror, Steve.

Posted by: A at July 29, 2006 07:22 PM

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Yasmin Asharah's father is a Somali MP who is busy in ignating clannish hatred within the virtually fragile government established in Kenya in 2004. Her mother was married under a hidden marital contract known as "Qodbo Siro" (Secret cucumbine), it is a sort of licence for prostitution. Women who are married under the qodbo siro have no legal rights from the man or from the clan. She is paid food and sometimes shelter in order to be sexually exploited by the man.

Probably the young Yasmin wanted a "marriage contract" from the man who impregnated her. It seems that she was "pregnant" by the time of her murder. Who is the man? Is William Imona-Russel 32 of Toronto the killer and at the same time the man who impregnated her?

My heart goes out for the young woman who desired marriage and family.

Posted by: Somali at July 30, 2006 07:33 AM

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Yasmin Asharah's [sic] father is a Somali MP who is busy in ignating [sic] clannish hatred within the virtually fragile government established in Kenya in 2004. Her mother was married under a hidden marital contract known as "Qodbo Siro" (Secret cucumbine) [sic], it is a sort of licence for prostitution.

That's some spectacular investigative reporting on your part, "Somali." I myself can find absolutely no evidence for these claims, in the new wires, press releases, or any other public record. I trust you'll be able to produce supportive documentation for your accusations?

But even if we were to take your statement at face value--which would require quite a leap of faith--what does it prove? That Ms. Asharah's father is a bad politician and something of a jerk? That her mother is a victim of a culturally-specific and, to our Western eyes, gender-oppressive domestic practise? Certainly, it says nothing about the wider Somali community in Toronto.

Posted by: A at July 30, 2006 01:54 PM

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Which MP? Which of the four parties? Was he one of the MPs who resigned from the Transitional National Parliament in July? Perhaps you can get in touch with me by email...

Posted by: Steve Janke at July 30, 2006 01:54 PM

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Hi Steve,

Mr Asharah holds a canadian citizenship and is a MP in the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) currently based in a rural town of Baidoa. You can find his name in this list (he is N. 93) Awad Ahmed Ashara)
http://www.somali-civilsociety.org/downloads/Names%20of%20the%20selected%20Members%20of%20Parliament.pdf

Here you can glimse his photo
http://www.laasqoray.net/images/awad.jpg

The point that I was making earlier is that men like MP Asharah put their life's priority in "violence and clannish hatred" rather than the welfare of their children. It is unfortunate also that women in this society are treated sub-human.

Posted by: Somali at July 30, 2006 03:42 PM

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I've already encountered MP Ashareh/ah/o in my research, but I can find no link to Yasmin or her family, other than a shared name, which doesn't mean all that much. I'll keep looking though.

Posted by: Steve Janke at July 30, 2006 03:48 PM

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The family is still in denial and will not come forward because of:

-Yasmin was unwed and pregnant at the time of her death.
- The allegedly murdered Mr. Imona-Russel is a Nigerian (a bantu), christian and has a criminal history.
- Yasmin lived alone without the protection of her family/clan.

Posted by: at July 30, 2006 04:29 PM

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"We know absolutely, positively nothing about this except we absolutely, positively know it had nothing to do with Islam.

Sincerely,
Toronto Police"

LOL

Although, one can't really laugh too loudly, considering Toronto Chief Cop Bill Blair's idiotic admission (made while nearly busting with pride, might I add) after the arrest of 17 terror- oops, pardon me - alleged terrorists in Brampton:

"I would remind you that there was not one single reference made by law enforcement to Muslims or the Muslim community"

How are such individuals charged with the highest level of police authority able to successfully protect the public when they wear such impenetrable multi-culti binders? Can anybody honestly feel safe from terrorist acts when this sort of PC insanity is not an exception to the rule, but in actuality, the de facto rule itself?

mhb23re
(email is above u/name at google webmail service)

Posted by: mhb at July 30, 2006 11:09 PM

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... and, of course, it goes without saying that one cannot laugh at the circumstances of this terrible murder, either.

mhb

Posted by: mhb at July 31, 2006 07:37 AM

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mhb: Did it ever occur to you that Mr. Blair wouldn't have to make such painfully worded PC statements to appease the local Muslim community if people like you didn't insist, at every opportunity, on lumping together a tiny fraction of extremists with the huge number of moderate Muslim Canadians who have nothing to do with hate and terrorism?

Every world leader in the Western world, from PM Harper to Mr. Bush to Mr. Tony Blair to Mr. Olmert, has taken great pains to emphasize in the press that the present 'War on Terror' is being waged against terrorists and not against the Muslim world. I think the question you need to ask yourself is, "Can anybody honestly feel safe from terrorist acts when people like me continue to create the very environment where home-grown terror is allowed to flourish, by stereotyping the entire Muslim community and pushing its marginalized members ever closer to the fundamentalist extremes?"

Posted by: A at July 31, 2006 09:29 AM

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I knew the victim. I just finished having a distraught beer with the boyfriend, whom I also know. The facts (in the Star specifically) do oscillate...her age for one. I know when her birthday is and yet she some how ages one year in a three month period of reporting. Her being Muslim (or not) has bloody well nothing to do with her case...Muslim is just an inflamatory term (considering current events) spilt by the lips of a**ho;le reporters who need to use glaring phraseology in their articles. Irresponsible callous bastards.
She was a sweet girl and yes had problems with my buddy/co-worker but it most likely was a random act of brutal violence (which does occur in this city believe it or not).

Posted by: Tackleho at July 31, 2006 03:36 PM

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Tackleho, get in touch with me by email, if you don't mind.

Posted by: Steve Janke at August 1, 2006 02:15 PM

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